Dominance and typicality norms for properties convergent and discriminant validity

Used 2 techniques to gather data on property dominance and property goodness. Sensory properties of verbally depicted items, such as those of color or shape, were indexed for dominance (frequency of output) and typicality (perceptual goodness). 193 college students were each assigned to 1 of 4 conditions. The most dominant property response was computed for 105 nouns by 1 group. A 2nd group rated these properties for typicality, relative to a constituent property (i.e., given one's idea of yellow, how typically "yellow" were specific items?). A 3rd group produced as many properties as possible for each of 65 nouns. Dominance was computed for all 459 properties so produced. The 4th group rated these 459 properties for typicality relative to the parent noun. A multimethod-multitrait analysis indicated that both typicality and dominance were reliable and that both exhibited convergent and discriminant validity. Typicality measured relative to an ideal property exhibited greater discriminant validity from dominance than when measured relative to the parent noun. Selected uses of these norms in studies of semantic memory, metaphor judgment, and concept identification are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Copyright 1983 American Psychological Assn, all rights reserved)